être

[ɛtʁ]

/[ɛtʁ]/ verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

The verdict

“être” is an uncommon German word, ranked #73,168 in German word frequency and used as a verb.

#73,168
frequency rank, German
4
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - sich in einem Zustand, einer Charakteristik befinden

Key facts for être
PropertyValue
Headwordêtre
LanguageGerman
Part of speechVerb
IPA[ɛtʁ]
Letters4
Frequency rank#73,168
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Where “être” sits in German frequency

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right). être lands here:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

The German entry for être is 4 letters long, classified as a verb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as [ɛtʁ]. Corpus data places it at rank #73,168 in overall German word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it. Wiktionary records 2 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.

We couldn't generate a plausible misspelling set for être, suggesting the orthography follows predictable German patterns. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

This entry's etymology isn't recorded, so spelling patterns must be inferred from the word's phoneme-to-grapheme mapping rather than from a documented borrowing chain. The correct German form is être, spelled Ê-T-R-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    sich in einem Zustand, einer Charakteristik befinden
  2. 2
    an einem Ort sein

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 German corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "être"?
"être" is spelled Ê-T-R-E. The IPA pronunciation is [ɛtʁ].
What does "être" mean?
As a verb, "être" means: sich in einem Zustand, einer Charakteristik befinden
How do you pronounce "être"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "être" is [ɛtʁ]. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What language does "être" come from?
"être" is a German word. PlainSpell covers definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data across English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Using “être”

The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.

  • The one correct German spelling is Ê-T-R-E - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
  • Say it as [ɛtʁ] (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
  • Browse more German words and confusable pairs in the same reference. German words
Data Source

Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list